McGarren Flack in his new, 1900 square-foot studio.

McGarren Flack is ready to go big.

A professor at Dixie State University in St. George, Flack began painting in the fall of 2002, while in the Illustration program at Brigham Young University. After graduation, he pursued an MFA at the University of Utah. Flack, however, says his professional interest in art started when he saw the John Singer Sargent traveling art show in Washington D.C. and was captivated by Sargent’s ability to produce a scene that came alive with bravura brushstrokes.

Another moment of inspiration came in the summer of 2019, when he visited Europe for the first time. “I was inspired to build a large studio space to start creating large works of art. The week after getting back we met with an architect and designed the space and then broke ground three months later.”

Thanks to the imposed isolation of COVID-19, Flack was able to finish the studio in early 2020. It took about six months to build the 1900-square- foot studio space: 1200 square feet of working studio space with 20-foot ceilings and three large bay windows on the north side, and 700 square feet of garage space to build frames.

“I was able to get some painting done during the summer of 2020 in the space but because of Covid-19 things were changed at DSU, and I had to change how and what I was teaching, which ultimately got in the way of creating during the fall semester,” Flack says.

“I am excited about 2021 because I have removed multiple distractions and will focus back on painting for my gallery and clients while making demonstration videos for a couple of followers. I really like teaching, but I love creating. Now that I have taken a large step back in creating art I am going to leap forward and make art like the dickens in my new studio space.”

You can view more of McGarren Flack’s art at www.flackstudio.com or on Instagram.

What's New

Every January we check in with Utah artists to see what the new year holds in store for them.